Where The Lost Have Gone
by FUN 2 KNOW
Summary: Having survived the slip-space anomaly, one Spartan ll wakes into a new world; a world on the precipice of damnation and even more desperate than humanity's crisis with the Covenant. Follow the tale of Spartan Li-008, as he makes his mark on this world, where he will face trials and hardships that will push his skills and humanity to the edge. Spartans never die. They're just MIA.
1. Chapter 0: Pilot

Where The Lost Have Gone

I know I already have my hands full with my other fanfic_"The Hokage Of The League"_, but I just felt I needed to get this idea of my brain. This in no way means that I have officially returned from my state of hiatus. I am still very much busy. Still haven't been able to get a new desktop, moved to my new home, and to top it off finals are underway. This little project of mine was an idea that had spawned before my official announcement of hiatus and was near completion. I managed to squeeze in enough time and effort on my rather slow laptop to give it a good touchup and finalize its details.

I can't say for certain that I will continue to push more effort into this fanfic when I return. That, I guess will be entirely dependent on my audience's feedback. It's my first Halo and Walking Dead fanfiction so here's to hoping for the best. You can consider this as a Christmas Present to you readers. Also, I would like to note that I posted this on my Birthday so YAY me! HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything involving The Walking Dead Series or the Halo Series. All rights belong to their respective owners.

Rated M for graphical scenes and perhaps foul language.

XxX

Chapter 0: Pilot/Vertigo

Silence prevailed. Not a single sound could be heard. Only a sensation of emptiness could be felt. Felt? He stirred, slowly creeping out of the recesses of unconsciousness. Eyes blinking rapidly, the man, if one could call him so, stiffly shook his head side to side. He coughed, getting the unpleasant taste of copper within his mouth.

The first thing he took notice of was the utter lack of light. All around was pure darkness; not a shred of illumination. Quickly he realized that his armor's systems had entered into a state of lockdown, shutting nearly everything off to conserve power.

Responding to its occupant's awakening, the MJOLNIR Mk V armor systems rebooted. Several seconds later the display screen flickered on, giving the man his first glimpse of the area he was currently situated in. He found that he was in the epicenter of a small crater; rock and dirt around him melted and steaming with a faint blue-white hue. It gave the appearance that he had been struck by a plasma mortar.

Slowly rising to a standing position the man flexed, stretching his stiff joints and limbs. Taking a moment to perform a quick diagnosis on his armor's systems, he noticed that the outer layering of the armor had been scorched black by overheated plasma, and a few of the subsystems were damaged. Unfortunately, the damage sustained had done a real number on his suit's energy shielding, making it unusable at this point. Though an unwelcome discovery, he knew that he'd have to make due. He made a mental note to do a more thorough diagnosis once he had thoroughly assessed his current predicament.

Which brought him to the question of how he had gotten where he was now, and for that matter, how he was still alive. Spartan 008 Li was indisputably confused, a feeling he did not relish in the least, nor enjoyed staying so for too long if at all possible. The last thing he recalled was attempting to repair the power conduit aboard the captured Covenant CAC-Class Assault Carrier _Ascendant Justice_. He, along with Spartans John-117, Fredric 104, William-043, Anton-044, and Grace-093 had gone to the outer hull of the ship to repair the damaged power conduit when they were ambushed by the remnant Elite forces still aboard the ship.

Li accessed his suit's memory logs, paneling back to the events prior to him falling unconscious. Thankfully, the quality of the MJOLNIR armor's camera feed was better than the standard UNSC issued one. Reversing the vid, Li paused when he found the events that had transpired aboard the Ascendant Justice. The group of Spartans had mobilized, concentrating fire on the camouflaged Elites. Li weaved through debris, using his EVA armor's superior space combat capabilities to glide into cover as he took a few short, controlled burst of shots from his BR55HB SR Battle Rifle.

Pockets of white hot balls of plasma streaked across the ship's hull, some missing off course but others were dangerously close. And then it happened. Li's vision was enveloped by an oncoming distorted flash of blue-white plasma.

The video clip ended there, only to return once again when power was restored to the armor. Li cut the feed, unsatisfied with its results. It only brought on more questions than answers. How had he survived? And more so, how in the world had he somehow been transported to a planet of some sort? Had the slip-space anomaly caused by the Forerunner Crystal that Doctor Halsey had uncovered deep beneath Castle Base back on Reach somehow had a hand in this strange phenomenon? Li forced himself to squelch his growing anxiety and creeping sense of vertigo. He paused, entering into a state of meditation that he had frequently used to mentally prepare himself for upcoming combat missions. It was a practice none to dissimilar to the one his fellow Spartan ll Linda-058, whom had taken to the traditional practice of Zen Buddhism meditation.

His mind now sharp, Li focused on the here and now. First he'd have to figure out exactly what planet he was on and then establish communication with the nearest UNSC forces. The UNSC gravely needed any active Spartans available against their deadly foe; the Covenant. He hoped that his fellow Spartans had succeeded in their mission and returned back to Earth safely. Cortana had vital information that could turn the tide of the war. Something that humanity was in dire need of.

Clearly he wasn't on Reach, given the glaringly obvious fact that the surface hadn't been glassed by the Covenant. Scanning the nearby vicinity, Li made note that he was in what seemed to be a desolate forest, surrounded by a dense field of oak trees and other distinguishable flora and fauna indigenous to Earth's ecosystem. A fact that caught the Spartan's attention. Upon further inspection, Li confirmed that the wild flowers were indeed Lilies, grown on Earh. Perhaps he had landed on Earth. A fortunate stroke of luck were it to be true.

Li activated his comms systems, pinging the ODP stations positioned around the perimeter of Earth. No answer. Li frowned, neither the Orbital Defense Platforms nor any of the other UNSC stations that should've been there had picked up his call. Nothing but hollow echoes. It was as though they were never there to begin with.

Not one to give up, Li soldiered on, moving through the foliage in search of the nearest establishment or sign of civilization; if there even was one. Li noticed how the forest around him was healthy and the temperature was hot and somewhat humid. The planet was in the full swing of the summer season.

Li didn't get too far before his heightened senses picked up on the faint shuffling of leaves and a mixture of groans and moans approximately 30 meters to his right.

He was hopeful that it was a nearby resident of the area, but questioned the bizarre sounds that whatever it was, was making. Li blended into the foliage, closing in on the position of the noise, careful not to give away his position. For all he knew it could very well be hostile, or heaven forbid the Covenant. Quietly, he brushed leaves from a bush that were obscuring his vision. Li immediately spotted a lone figure in a small clearing.

Li magnified his HUD's display to 2x magnification, getting a clearer image of the figure in question. To his relief the person was a human male, civilian by the looks of it. The man was huddled on both his knees, bending over what was unmistakably the corpse of a deer. A youngling deer if its short stature and small horns were any given indication.

Li's eyes narrowed. Something wasn't right. The man had most definitely killed the young deer given the sight of his bloodied hands, yet he didn't have any hunting supplies on him to speak of. In fact, his attire consisted of nothing but a simple pair of jeans, sneakers, and a gray sweatshirt; not exactly the kind of gear you pack for a hunting trip. And then there was the fact that the man didn't appear to have any sort of firearm or weapon on him to speak of, though it was possible that he could be concealing it.

After several moments of debating with himself, Li decided to make contact with the civilian. He needed information on where he was as soon as possible and this may be the only civilian for miles. Li didn't have a weapon on him as they were seemingly vaporized in the ensuing explosion from the overheated plasma blast. But even unarmed, Li was still a force to be reckoned with. After all, even amongst the Spartan ll, Li's CQC capabilities were unrivaled. If the worst was to happen, Li figured that he was more than capable of handling a lone, unarmed civilian. He walked slowly towards the man, trying to appear as nonthreatening as an over 2 meter tall super soldier, clad in MJOLNIR armor could possibly be; though he tensed himself to respond to any acts of hostility at a moment's notice.

"Sir, don't be alarmed. I'm not here to hurt you. I'd just like to know where I currently am." The man ceased movement, twitching erratically before turning to face Li. The sinking suspicion he had had felt earlier now flared like an alarm, spiking the Spartan's heart rate. And he was right to be. The man's skin had rotted to a pale, ghostly white. Grime and blood smeared all over his torn open mouth, which gave the Spartan a clear view of his inner jaw and connecting teeth. A horrific visage. It looked like a scene depicted from John's description of the flood back on Reach upon meeting Vice Admiral Whitecomb.

The man, if he could even call it such now, unsteadily rose to his feet; sniffing the air and looking inquisitively at the Spartan. Its curiosity lasted for but a moment longer before it's face contorted into a look of pure, unadulterated hunger before speeding into Li's direction, teeth clamping up and down.

Li suppressed his initial surprise, entering into what Kelly had dubbed as Spartan Time. Sidestepping to the side, Li grabbed one of its outstretched arms in to a vice-like grip before twisting harshly, snapping the creature's appendage out of place. The creature was unperturbed by this, not even bothering to flinch or show any ounce of pain from just having its arm broken like a twig. Its arm dangling uselessly at its side, the creature once again lunged at the Spartan. Li put a stop to that with an impossibly fast open-palmed strike to the chest that sent the creature sailing into the air and crashing into the thick bark of an oak tree.

Li was certain that he heard the thing's spine crack on impact. To his utter bewilderment, the thing moved, flailing around on the ground as it was having difficulty getting up again. How was the creature still alive? It had suffered both a crippling and fatal blow, guaranteed to either incapacitate or downright kill a normal human being. Finally realizing that it could no longer stand, the creature futilely attempted to crawl towards Li, but the Spartan ll had had enough. Li raised his right boot before sharply pressing downward on the thing's face with enough to completely cave in its skull and brain.

Taking a moment to reorient himself, Li inspected the corpse. Even with his suit's air filters the creature's dead carcass smelt rancid. Checking its pulse, he confirmed that it was indeed dead. What really puzzled the Spartan was the blood oozing out of its crushed head, or more specifically the blood's consistency. The blood's pigmentation had discolored to a murky black-red, but what truly grabbed the Spartan's attention was the fact that the blood had clotted. But blood clotting wasn't supposed to occur until after post mortem. He had killed it only moments prior.

Shaking his head, Li turned to the dead deer. Its stomach had been forcibly ribbed open, spewing out the lower intestines and showcasing a portion of its rib cage. Li felt disgusted by the notion that the 'man' had just dug right into the animals flesh and ate its innards.

The need to get in touch with the nearest sign of civilization strengthened all the more, Li pressed on through the forest. For miles Li trudged through the forest, anticipating any more hostile attacks from creatures just like the one he had killed earlier. He needed to reach the next town as soon as possible since he had no food supplies on hand. His last meal had been hours ago. Spartans were made to be pushed beyond the normal limits of a humans capabilities, but even they needed the necessary sustenance to survive.

Coming up on an incline, Li marched up a small grassy hill where a paved road stretched across the landscape. Finally, some headway. Satisfied that he now had a more direct path to the next settlement, Li followed the road. The road was open and devoid of any signs of traffic. In fact, Li had yet to see a single vehicle as he continued to walk down the almost endless line of asphalt. After walking for approximately one hour, Li noticed a green sign post that noted the next town was only five miles down ahead. Relief flooded Li's system as he quickened his pace.

As Li neared the one mile mark, he could make out the outline of the town. This time a billboard sign came up, giving the name of the town in clear bold letters. _"Welcome to North Augusta"._

Being on a higher elevation, Li could practically see the whole town. Li stopped at the sight of the town, mouth partially open in disbelief. This _North Augusta_ wasn't very big, only home to a population of a little over twenty thousand, but that wasn't what had dumbfounded the Spartan. What had caused the Spartan's silence was the town's architecture. The town's topography looked ancient, at least in comparison to the 26th century architectural design that he was more familiar with. If he had to guess, Li figured that the town was made sometime in the 21st century; an impossible notion.

Once again, he found himself asking the question that had nagging at him ever since he had first woken up. Just what in the world was going on here?

End…

XxX

And there you have it guys and gals. I sincerely hope you enjoyed it and I lived up to you reader's expectations. I also hope to inspire more fanfics in this crossover genre, as it currently rather nonexistent with the exception of an odd few.

Also, I'm still iffy on the title. I tried to juggle around names for the fanfic but this was the best I could come up with for now. If any of you readers feel that there would be a better name for the title, then by all means give me a holler.

If I do go on to continue this story, I will answer important question or concerns noted by readers at the ending of each chapter. Other less important question will most likely be answered via PM if I can.

Questions You Readers May Be Curious About:

Q: Will Li be in a romantic relationship?

A: Still something up for debate on my part, though I have to be honest that I don't really foresee a budding relationship happening for him. It have to be a really convincing argument, but even so I don't want something like romance to overshadow the overall strengths of the story.

Q: Will Li ever meet up with Rick and the other survivors mentioned in the show?

A: I honestly haven't planned for such a situation though it has a good chance of occurring. The fanfiction will be based mostly off of the television series as I haven't really read the comics, though there may or may not include elements from both.

Q: Won't it be overkill for Li to possess his MJOLNIR armor?

A: Perhaps, perhaps not. I included the armor for the fact that it would be unrealistic to suddenly have Li missing his armor without any sensible reason to explain its disappearance; and also for the fact that the MJOLNIR armor looks freaking rad. Yeah, that's right I said rad, deal with it. We'll just have to see what happens wont we.


	2. Chapter 1: Stockpiling

Where The Lost Have Gone

Hello again readers, I'm back with another chapter. While relatively small, I did receive positive and encouraging reviews so I'll try to pursue this story. I was encouraged to get this out sooner since I'm still currently watching the Walking Dead Marathon on AMC.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything from the Walking Dead of Halo franchise. All rights belong to their respected owners.

Rated M for graphical scenes and perhaps foul language.

XxX

Chapter 1: Stockpiling

The blue sky had now dulled to a sunset orange. The day was nearing its end and night was soon to follow. Upon reaching the town of _North Augusta_, Li found that the small town was rather lacking in its supposed sum of 20,000 residents. The town appeared just as barren as the roads were; not a soul in sight. Cars lay sprawled on the sides of roads; gas tanks siphoned of any remaining fuel as well as any other valuables. Flimsy sheets of paper billowed in the wind across the streets and shattered glass had fallen from broken store windows. Many of the buildings and houses doors had been boarded up as if to prevent something from entering.

In spite of this unusual circumstance, Li moved to begin his sweep of the town with the hopes that he may find supplies that he was in dire need of and if he was lucky, someone who was coherent and wouldn't either shoot or eat him on sight. Though, given his streak of luck Li wasn't going to hold his breathe.

Li ran his gloved fingers along the concrete walls of a small diner. His eyes and sense of touch were all he needed to confirm that what he was seeing was indeed real. For an odd moment, he entertained the idea that perhaps he had had been transported to a planet somewhere in the outer colonies that had isolated itself from any form of connection with the UNSC or UEG government. As crazy as the idea sound, it now seemed to be the most probable.

It wasn't just the town's architecture that appeared antiquated, there was also obscenest vehicles dating back to the 21st century. Li had rummaged through a few of the abandoned cars left strewn along the streets and sidewalks. Every one of them seemed to use old fossil fuels as its main power source. Fossil fuels has long since back been made obsolete as a source of fuel as every vehicle used by both UNSC and even civilians used hydrogen powered vehicles. The usage of fossil fuels had long been deemed as an archaic and insufficient source of fuel consumption. This begged the question of why were these seemingly non-existent colonist using such an outdated source fuel for their engines.

Li crept next to the diner's window, peering through to see if there was any movement inside. A quick check on his motion sensor told him that there were no contacts. Walking around, Li opened the front door. The door squeaked audibly and rained a small shower of dust particles down on the Spartan's armor. Obviously the restaurant hadn't been well maintained or used for some time.

Li slowly made his way past the rows of tables, his destination set on the kitchen in the back. He made note of the many left out dishes on the tables; some knocked over and shattered. Everyone must've left in a hurry judging by the utter chaotic state the diner was left in. Li had to duck under the door that led to the storage supply in the back as it wasn't quite made with easy passage for those of his height.

To his disappointment, much of the supply of food had already been raided. Someone else had beaten him to the punch. Anything left was most likely already spoiled or scavenged by another. Li frowned. Even one those high nutrient supplement bars issued by the Marine Corps; as utterly revolting as they were, would have come in handy at the moment.

The fridge and pantries had been ransacked already, leaving nothing but empty dishes, containers, and cans. Bending his knees down, Li pressed himself against the floor, tilting his head back and forth in search of any edible food that had perhaps been forgotten or dropped by mistake. A small, perceptible small curved on his lips at the sight of two unopened pairs of tin canned food containers. Both had noticeable indentions in them; most likely from falling roughly to the floor.

Li's eyes glossed over the labels. "A can of peach fruit and chicken noodle soup." Well, a step up from the standard issue military MRE indeed. Li pocketed the cans of food and moved to do a quick second sweep of the small diner before settling down to rest. Li doubted that the stools or chairs in the diner would be able to withstand the weight of his MJOLNIR armor, so instead he situated himself comfortably on the concrete floor, back leaned against the wall.

Li heard the familiar hiss of his helmet's pressure locks venting before he removed it from his head for the first time since prior to the start of his mission on Reach. Setting the modified EVA helmet aside, Li removed the lid of the canned fruit. Taking but a moment to examine the contents of the can, Li began to devour the soft, juicy orange fruit. Once he was done with the fruit, Li began to peel off the lid of the canned soup when his eyes caught sight of something on the can's wrapping; something that startled the Spartan. Inspecting the label more closely, he saw the date of expiration. It read _1/22/13_.

"_Buts that can't be right."_ Li tried to rationalize the thought. He quickly reached for his helmet, placing it back on. Once the display system lit back up, he immediately checked the military calendar set in his armor's systems. _September, 2552. _Li's eyes drifted back to the canned soup, thumb swiping over the marked date. "_Perhaps a marketing error_" Li thought to himself, trying to make heads or tails of his situation. Shaking his head. Li removed his helmet once again and quickly drowned the remaining contents of the soup. Li wiped his dry lips, looking disdainfully at the now empty can, before tossing it with a deep sigh. The situation seemed to be getting more complicated as the day dragged on.

Peering out the window, Li took note that the sun has now completely set, leaving the moon and stars to take its place. His suits internal time systems read at _2000 hours. _Li felt the fatigue of the events that had led up to this point start to creep in. The Spartan ll had been in constant combat readiness since before his arrival on this world, and the only sleep he had allowed himself was from being knocked into an unconscious state for an unknown set of time.

The words of Chief Petty Officer Mendez spoke in his strong, burly voice in the back of his mind. _"Sleep can as deadly a weapon as a pistol or grenade." _ Li knew the truth in these words. Sleep deprivation could be as harmful as nearly any injury. He needed some time to let both his body and mind rest and recuperate.

While not an idle point of rest for any standard, the diner would have to do for the night. Li made certain that his helmet was secured and sealed correctly, before setting an alarm for _0300_. Repositioning himself on the floor, Li closed his eyes and let his mind wander. His mind whirled with activity, pondering his predicament and the day's events. The discovery of the date printed on the can only further fueled his growing suspicion. He was beginning to suspect that the slipspace anomaly caused by the Forerunner crystal had somehow propelled him back in the past on Earth. It would also explain the use of outdated technology and general topography. But something was missing. If he had truly been sent back to the past, then where was everyone? Deja, the AI whom had supervised his curriculum as a child had taught him everything pertaining to Earth's history, but there was no mention of any unusual incidents in the years _2012-13_. Events in this time didn't correlate with the history of his timeline; otherwise he would have heard of such an event transpiring through textbooks or other records and sources.

Li stirred, shifting to another position. For now, Li let the matter be. His mind was too congested with thoughts on the strange situation that he'd been put in while he needed to sleep. There would be more time to ponder and plan out his next course of action the following morning after much need rest.

XxX

At the sound of his suit's alarm, Li's eyes shot open. The Spartan's gaze swept across the room in a span of a second, before he slowly got to his feet. Brushing off dust that had collected on his armor, Li made way toward the exit; eager to get the day going.

Li cautiously opened the exit door just enough to give him a good look of the outside. The sky was still very much dark. Sunlight would most likely not creep in for another hour and a half or so. The street appeared empty as it did yesterday. Li sauntered through the shadows, amply provided by the darkened sky; destination set on the nearest supply store. With absolutely no supplies of food or water, Li knew that he wouldn't last very long.

Fortune seemed to smile upon the misfortunate Spartan, as only a few blocks down he spotted a department store. As Li neared its front entrance, his hearing picked up on gurgling sounds emanating from another of the creatures that Li had met the other day. Though, this one's physique wasn't nearly as well maintained. The creature, presumably female this time, lay on her back. She was pinned down under a car; its front tires had crushed into her legs and abdomen, breaking through the bone and keeping her firmly in place. The woman's face was sullied by blood and her nose's skin had peeled right off, revealing her bony nasal cavity.

The creature finally took notice of the Spartan's presence, straining to reach him with the only arm that wasn't pinned down by the vehicle. Li looked on sadly at the poor creature. Shaking his head slightly, the Spartan didn't hesitate to silence the abomination with a boot to the head. Pressing on, Li made it to the front entrance of the department store. From what information he gathered from observing those walking corpses, Li had surmised that they only seemed to retain the basics of motor functions, and responded to either scent or sound.

Going with this basis, Li planned to use this to his advantage. The Spartan purposefully opened the door in a swinging motion, eliciting the ringing noise from the bells perched near the top of the entrance door. Seconds ticked by as Li waited with baited breathe for any sign of the creatures. Sure enough, two stumbling corpses waddled over toward the source of the bell's noise. Another lacked behind the two in front, forced to scrape and drag its decomposing carcass across the tiled floor without the support of the bottom portion of its body.

Li clenched his fist in preparation for the oncoming skirmish. Waiting till the first creature was within range, Li moved imperceptibly to avoid the creature's reckless lunge. Taking advantage of the walking corpse's clumsiness, Li snaked his arms around the neck of the creature. It thrashed against the Spartan's headlock, arms flailing and jaw snapping. In a swift movement, Li twisted sharply to the right, snapping the creature's neck, then threw the motionless corpse at the second creature who was approaching dangerously close; knocking it off its feet on the floor.

The undead creature struggled with the weight of its companion on him, but Li didn't give it time to get back up as he was already on him. Clenching his left hand into fist, Li carved it into the squirming corpse's skull, crushing its cranium with ease and effectively killing it. Li grimaced at the blood and brain matter that had splattered over his fist. He shook it several times, succeeding in wiping some of the gore off his hand.

With those two more immediate threats effectively neutralized, that left only one more left. None too far, the creature was still crawling over to the Spartan's location, a trail of dark crimson blood smeared in its wake. Li stalked toward the bisected moving corpse, punting its head with such power that its neck nearly tore off its shoulders.

Looking around the proximity for any more hostiles, Li began to scout out the perimeter. Once he was satisfied that the area was clear, Li swiftly began to search for any essential materials that he felt he would need. Taking a quick stop at the camping section of the store, Li grabbed one large duffel bag and a spacious sized travel backpack. Li then began the meticulous process of stockpiling any essential supplies. For the most part, the store was still amply supplied with food and other valuables that were untouched by scavengers or perhaps raiders; though certain sections of food and camping supplies isles had been cleared. Li first stored away as much perishable food as he could fit within his newly acquired duffel bag, along with spare clean clothes. Next was the survival gear selection, were Li gathered items such as a standard old compass, pocket knife, water canister, glow sticks, flashlight, matches, hygienic products, medical supplies and other important essentials.

Li was just in the middle of contemplating whether or not to bundle a small frying pan to cook any of his food when the sound of moaning and groaning put him on high alert. He quickly put the frying pan back on the rack before hefting his gear and slinging his backpack and duffel bag around his shoulders. He'd gathered enough supplies to last him for an extended period of time. The sounds of the creatures grew in volume as it neared closer, and by the sounds of it there was more than just a handful of them. To be on the safe side, Li make a break for the back exit, finding it relatively clear for the most part with the exception of a few stragglers who lumbered about in a dazed manner. Nothing he couldn't avoid and weave around.

A fact that he had quickly picked up on was that these walking corpses weren't inherently fast, though their unyielding persistence was relentless and more than made up for their lack of mobility; especially when in large crowds. At least Li had figured out where the residents of the town had gone missing. It had become apparent that the town's residents had been infected with some virus or infection of sorts; a deadly one at that. Whatever the case, Li was satisfied that he had managed to finally stockpile on much needed items. Now for his next move…

End…

XxX

That's it for this chapter, please review and feel free to give me constructive criticism. Your feedback will be much appreciated and could help benefit this story and my writing.

Also, I have had issues with adding Spartan 008 Li to the character list on Fanfiction. Would any of you readers please do me a favor and try to add him on the site, as I've been unable to for some reason or another. That would be much appreciated.


	3. Chapter 2: Moira

Where The Lost Have Gone

I apologize for the pause in updates. New school semester started and I needed some time to acclimate back on to the school schedule. Anyways, I hope that everyone enjoyed their New Years.

Also, thanks so much for the good reception and reviews. Remember, constructive criticism is welcome, as well as encouraging comments and reviews.

Enjoy the story.

XxX

Disclaimer: I don't own anything from the Walking Dead or Halo franchise. All rights belong to their respective owners.

Chapter 2: Moira

Bloodshot eyes opened with a start, frantically looking around the area. Her dominant left hand swiftly gripped onto the small firearm laid beside her while her other hand clung around the child sleeping soundlessly beside her; her child. That was how Moira woke up. Her old .22 Winchester magnum poised in front of her in defense, Moira waved it purposefully around for any targets that may have snuck up on them. It took her several long moments to realize that no one was there, they were safe; at least for the moment.

Moira exhaled a deep and tired sigh, something she'd been doing often lately, and probably would continue to for the upcoming months; if she lasted that long that is. She clutched her forehead with her armed hand, trying to make sense of it all. The steady rising of her daughter's breathing told her that her actions hadn't woken the young child up.

"_Good."_ She thought to herself. _"Ash has been through a lot lately. She needs the rest."_ Moira smiled to herself as she gazed at the peaceful expression on her daughter's sleeping face. It helped her forget about the stressful times and bleak situation they were faced with. She raised her unarmed hand to move a few loose strands that covered her face before softly stroking her cheek.

Ash, short for Ashly, was only eight years old. She was a small girl with tan brown hair and beautiful porcelain features that made her almost doll-like. In her eyes, Ashly was the most beautiful creature that she had ever laid eyes on. From the moment she was born she had cherished and loved her daughter wholeheartedly. She was her everything, the sole reason to get up every treacherous morning and continue on.

This love however, did not extend to her father. The good for nothing waste of space had left her life before ever knowing of Ash's existence. Not that it mattered to Moira at all now. Moira had cursed the bastard for many months after his untold departure, but that hatred had withered when Ash was finally born. If anything, Moira was thankful to the man for giving her Ash, but that was as far as her gratitude extended.

Moira raised her arm and checked the time on her wrist watch, frowning. Moira wanted nothing more than to continue to lay there with her soundly sleeping daughter in her arms but she knew that they had to leave. Gently, Moira shook her daughter's shoulder, elapsing some moans and unintelligible mumbles from the child. Moira bent her mouth down to her daughter's ear, whispering silently to encourage her to wake up. After several moments she succeeded. Ash rubbed her tired eyes before trying in vain attempt to stifle a loud and exaggerated yawn. Seeing the yawn, Moira imminently imitated the act, hand over her own mouth. She half-glared at her daughter. "See what you gone and done. Yawning is contagious I tell you," Moira admonished in between yawns as Ash giggled cutely at her mother's antics.

Moira smiled. At least she was still able to get a smile out of her Ash, even under these circumstances. Raising both arms in the air, Moira stretched her back, getting a few satisfying pops. Time to start the day, and quickly. She tucked the Winchestor snuggly between the back folds of her pants where she could hide it from view with the hem of her shirt.

Moira told Ash to get ready for the day as quickly as she could, which her daughter obliged obediently. With that settled, Moira went on to scavenge whatever she could find of value in the house. The two had been traveling all day yesterday until they arrived in this quaint little town known as _Augusta_. Exhausted from the previous day's events, Moira managed to infiltrate one of the houses that lay near the outskirts of the town, away from the main structures and hopefully from those _things._ She didn't like the idea of invading someone else's home but given the circumstances she felt that she had no choice. Whoever had lived inside the house had long since left. Drawers and closets were hastily left open and clothes were left strewn in some places. The house had been locked prior to Moira's arrival so it couldn't have been from scavengers like herself.

Moira scoured through the kitchen for any edible food. The family had been mostly thorough in their emptying of the fridge and pantries, though they had left behind some food. Most of what was left in the fridge were already beginning to spoil and mold over. Moira sniffed some leftover cheese, but threw it back in the fridge after nearly gagging from the sour, pungent smell it was exuding. Scavenging what she could, Moira called for her daughter. Ash held onto the stairs attached handle as she descended the steps of the staircase. Ash had put on a fresh new pair of clothes and looked more awake. Moira gave a nod of approval; Ash was properly groomed for the day's events.

Once she was certain that they had gathered what they could, Moira prepped them to leave safely. A quick peek from the upstairs windows gave her a good view of the street they were on. Looking to and fro, Moira couldn't spot a sign of any Walker in sight. _"A lucky break"_, she thought.

Grabbing ahold of Ash's hand, Moira encouragingly ushered her daughter out the door, where they made a mad dash for the car they had parked up in the drive way. The car was a small night blue Hyundai, comfortable enough to house four occupants; five if they wanted to really cram someone in. It wasn't perhaps the most glamorous of vehicles, though it had gotten them this far along their trip. The stick shift may be of an older model, but it was all she could afford with the funds she had prior to the impending apocalypse. Moira cared little for aesthetics in this case; the car provided what they needed and had a desirable gas mileage. The little Hyundai wasn't equipped with automatic locks so Moira had to manually unlock it with her set of keys. Moira swiftly unhatched the trunk door, hastily throwing both her and her daughter's found valuables in next to their already existing luggage. Slamming the back, Moira slipped into the front seat, where her daughter was already patiently waiting for her in the passenger seat, as per her mother's instructions.

Strapping her own seat belt, Moira ignited the engine. The car whirred a raspy noise that soon deflated.

Moira frowned, trying the ignition again, and again, and again. After the umpteenth, unsuccessful venture, Moira lashed at the dashboard in anger. She cradled her hands with her face and silently damned her ill luck. Ash's cute face was full of concern for her mother. "Mom…" She spoke tentatively, unsure of how to console her mother.

Moira heaved a heavy sigh, doing her best to orient herself. _"Get your shit together woman."_ She mentally chided herself. Now wasn't the time to brood, she needed to get her act together; if not for herself then for Ash.

"Okay…" Moira whispered softly to herself. She turned to her daughter and gave her the most reassuring smile that she could muster. "It's okay sweety, Mommy's okay. _We're _okay." She gently caressed her daughter's cheek. The small smile that her daughter returned only fueled her inspiration to keep the girl safe from harm's way.

"Alright, this is what were gonna do…" Moira began to go over the hastily drawn plan that she had elaborated. With some hope, and a little luck, everything would go smoothly.

XxX

Light had begun the steady crawl over the horizon's edge, relieving the starry night sky with the warmth of the sun. Li moved through the thickness of town, unimpeded by the heavy luggage he carried and careful to make certain that his heavy weight didn't elicit too much noise as to attract unwanted attention his way.

The hulking Spartan ll crept closer up to the glass window on the side of the town's local library; the only one he'd seen for miles. Peering inside through the transparent glass, Li gazed upon his objective; a 36x24 inch poster map of the world displayed for visitors to see and held by large thumbtacks wedged onto each of its four corners. He'd need the map to properly coordinate and set up his next set destination. By now, he had doubts of any survivors within the small town. Everyone left were either dead, transformed into one of those undead walking nightmares, or had long since abandoned the town.

Li's trained eyes took notice of one of the undead creatures standing maladroitly near the front desk, arms dangling loosely at its sides. Its head looked around slowly in a dazed manner, mouth agape wide enough for a fly to enter. The graying hair on its head had been loosened from its bun, leaving it disheveled in many areas. Glasses connected by a thin chain, hung awkwardly around its peeling neck. The once normal, female turned monstrosity could have perhaps been the librarian or customer service attendant.

Setting his luggage aside against the libraries wall, Li crept closer towards the decaying corpse. The slow witted creature made a wheezing noise as it was alerted to the Spartan's incoming presence. Before the creature could act, Li had silenced it with deadly efficiency, making sure to aim squarely for the brain, as that seemed to be the only sure method of effectively killing these things. Li stepped over the corpse, noting the librarian's nametag pinned onto her deflated left breast. The sight of the nametag bothered him more than it should. It brought a sense of humanity to the creature. Memories of his time fighting the Insurrectionist along with his fellow Spartans came flooding back. Times before the threat of the Covenant, when war seemed simpler, when humans fought against humans. Li banished his line of thought. Reminiscing about the past would only distract him from the present, where things mattered most.

Li pricked off the thumbtacks and tore the map off the wall. On the back was a more detailed map of the local area, including the current town he was in. His fingers strummed across the flimsy film of paper, eyes trailing down and marking any routes of interest and importance. Rolling up the tan brown paper, Li grabbed his luggage and exited the library.

Amply supplied with the essentials he acquired from the department store, Li figured that now would be an appropriate time to find a weapon. While it was true that he had extensive knowledge and experience in close quarters combat, Li didn't feel comfortable going into the unknown unprepared and without proper gear. He was beginning to miss having accessibility to any of the UNSC ordinance weapons, and it was always better to have more options on hand.

According to the map, there was a gun shop not too far from his location; a few minutes walk on foot. Of course, it would be a gamble heading towards the gun shop. There was always the chance that it may have already been cleaned through by other scavengers, but the risk could potentially be worth it. There was also the possibility that some of the armaments were still in their locked containers, untouched. Distance wasn't necessarily an issue. The real problem was that the gun's store was located in the thickness of town, where he'd spotted larger contingents of walking corpses lurking about. So far, Li managed to maneuver around substantially large groups of _them_, using the clear side streets and alleyways that were available.

Li made a sudden change in direction, looking left and right before heading through the backdoor of an abandoned clothing store. Just as every building in the town, the power and lights were off, giving it an ominous vibe. The low amount of illumination didn't impede Li's vision, for he his eyes were enhanced to adjust in low lighting sceneries. Despite this, Li flickered on his helmet's installed flash lights, shining its luminescence across the dimly lit space. Li brushed past an abundant of clothing rackets before his eyes found the door leading to the roof.

The Spartan quickly pushed past the door and scaled the flight of stairs. Switching off his flashlights, Li moved closer towards the edge, gazing at the vast view of the town. Li accessed his HUD's zoom-in feature, bringing a magnified screen of the town square. His eyes scanned the few scattered buildings littering the area until they found the town's chokepoint; a nest of buildings, as well as a horde of shambling zombies.

Li pulled out the map once again, laying it out on the stone floor. The map made no indication of the sewage system, removing the option of traveling through the sewer passages as a possible route. Walking through the main artery path would be a tantamount to suicide. Li firmly believed that his MJOLNIR armor could protect him, but even he wouldn't try his chances through numbers that large. The EVA specialist stroked the bottom portion of his helmet, where his chin would've been, trying to figure out the safest possible route to the gun's store.

Li's head turned back towards the buildings, focusing intently. There had to be a way. Li took note of how closely packed the buildings were made. _"Perhaps I can use that to my advantage…"_

_BOOOOOOMMM!_

The back hairs on Li's neck stood on end as the Spartan was immediately alerted to the ensuing explosion sounding off in the distance. The sound echoed throughout the entire area. Li had no doubt that every creature within the vicinity, alive or dead must've heard it go off. Off in the distance, just a few blocks outside of the town square, Li could make out the trail of black smoke drifting upwards towards the cloudless sky.

Now Li needed to go to the Town Square. Whatever or whoever had caused that explosion was most certainly alive. It was highly doubtful that the explosion was caused by those undead creatures. There was also the way how the explosion was strategically fixed to go off just outside the radius of the zombie mass. They must have used the explosion as a diversion to lure the undead away from town square; a smart tactic. Whatever their reason, Li was now determined more than ever to find these survivors at all cost. They could have the answers he sorely needed. Not wasting a single second more, Li hastily stowed the map away before taking off at breakneck speeds.

End…

XxX

I hope you readers were happy with this chapter, as well as the introduction of two new characters that are indeed ones I made up. More of Moira and Ash's history shall be unveiled in the upcoming chapters, as well as a more accurate time of how long the apocalypse has occurred. I checked the Walking Dead wiki and I found a helpful timeline of events that I sorely needed, as well as other interesting information that I can further implement into the story's plot.

For those of you who are interested in my other story "The Hokage Of The League", I have taken a pause in it for a bit. Lost some motivation to write chapters and I felt I needed this new story idea to kinda jumpstart more of my old enthusiasm. For now it's on ice, but I will see to resuming the story eventually.

As a reminder, any questions you have shall be answered at the bottom of my chapters. The important ones at least.

I may or may not increase the length of the chapters, but I can't guarantee it to be a regular thing. Short length chapters like these are just easier to manage; plus it makes them easier to update them quicker.

Also, I still haven't been able to add Li to the character list on Fanfiction. It would be much appreciated if one of you readers could do me the favor of adding him to the list. An electronic cookie fresh out of the oven shall be their reward.

Until next time.


End file.
